For a single electical box sinker off Screwfix a few weeks back. Did about 5 double sockets today before the shaft on it broke. Do I have to buy a whole new EBS at another $40 or can I just replace the shaft bit?
The link is
what they are going to do about it.
I am intrigued by these tools - how do they work?
Not very well :)
Basically you slap it on the end of your SDS plus drill with rotostop engaged. You then proceed to slowly bash a square shaped groove in your wall. Needs the middle bit cleaned out with a chisel after (though the description don't meantion that)
Or maybe I was doing it wrong, but they failed to provide the instructions....
Robert
I've never used one myself (current house has plasterboard, previous house predates relative affluence leading to possession of SDS drill
- ring o' 5mm masonry-drill holes, cold chisel and lump hammer worked well enough!). But my impression, backed up by a few words in the S'fix cat, is that you're supposed to use a circular cutter *first* - which they'll sell you separately as part 72224 for a mere 45 of your Earth pounds - to cut away the bulk of the material, and a pilot hole deeper than the box will be: only *then* do you swap to rotostop, mount the
74206 you just paid 40 quid for and use that to square off the round 'ole previously made.The words in the (printed) catalogue - possibly absent from the Web! - are, "Drill flat bottom square holes for electrical boxes in just 3 minutes. Even drills 6mm fixing hole. Square cutters for single and double gang sockets. Re-designed circular cutter for more efficient, faster drilling. Use 80mm Chisel after drilling circular hole in very hard materials such as engineering block and concrete. For use in breeze block, concrete block (up to 45 Newtons) and house brick. Use with SDS Plus machines with rotary stop. Supplied with full instructions." And then in tiny print, "single and double box require Circular Cutter (Quote 72224) and Pilot Drill (Quote 10809)"
- the Pilot Drills are 1.23 per set of 5, so essentially consumable.
If you've been trying to do the whole job with the square box alone, S'fix might not be quite so kind about sending you a replacement than if it had failed after five holes when used as intended. You *could* try arguing that you didn't get the "full instructions" which the cat said would be supplied; and/or that the website gives none of this info (if indeed it doesn't)! Maybe they'll be kind; maybe you can convince them to let you have a new single box thrown in free if you now buy a pack of pilot drills and the circular cutter? I've found them usually very reasonable about this sort of thing, though maybe it's the roguish Slavic charm and the immense influence I wield here in uk.d-i-y that does it... yeah right!
Cheers, Stefek
So after all that, do you think these box sinkers are any good then ? :-))
Unfortunately, the EBS that I got was already opened with a sticker on it saying - 'end of line, please restock' and absolutely no instructions. I phoned them about this and another cockup they made with another part of the order, and they told me what I described earlier in thread. (Before anyone asks, they made good on the wrong bits they delivered.) Drilling a circular hole first wouldn't make the slighest bit of difference anyway as the EBS works by bashing (err, chiselling), not drilling. i.e. it goes in/out, not round
Back to thread - can you get spare parts which clasp onto EBS sets like this or do I need a new one?
Robert
I would think the makers would be able to supply new parts for their products, so ask your supplier who supplies this item to them and then get the part direct from them.
We only use tools similar to these:
You should get a replacement.
The EBS is a fnacy chisel. The method that works best for me is to alternate the use of a 50mm SDS chisel with the EBS. Forget the large circular cutter it makes a lot of mess.
The EBS marks and makes the edge of the hole the other chisel does 90% of the work within the mark.
I prefer to use an 80mm chisel and leave the EBS in the van, especially on older bricks. There may be a little more damage to the plaster but at least there is something left to screw the back box to.
-- Adam
adamwadsworth@(REMOVETHIS)blueyonder.co.uk
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